PlanIt Police Blog

Small departments need an efficient way to schedule for 24x7 coverage. While there may not be as many options for small departments, there are still a couple to evaluate.

Below we explain 2 of the most common schedule rotations we have seen used in departments sized around 15 people.

If your department is small but needs to use a specific shift length, feel free to check out these examples solely based on 8 hour shifts, 10 hour shifts, and 12 hour shifts.

Before we get into these schedule examples, there is one most popular for the 15-person departments we evaluated…

But since we already cover this schedule in detail in another post we will refrain from explaining it here.

That schedule is the [2 on 3 off] [2 on 2 off] [3 on 3 off], also known as the Pitman Schedule.

Click the link above to view the article. You can also download it as a PDF here.

The other two we will focus on here are:

• [4 on 3 off]
• [5 on 2 off]

I’m sure you have heard of these rotations but have you really evaluated them for your department?

[4 on 3 off]

This 10 hour shift schedule is 4 days on, 3 days off.

It will only be one-week templates, but 3 squads to cover day, swing and night shift.

Here is what the first squad's templates would look like:

To complete your schedule, make 2 more squads with the same templates but different shift times.

[5 on 2 off]

The [5 on 2 off] schedule is very common.

It is the most simple and effective 8 hour shift schedule.

Below are the one-week templates for squad one on day shift:

You can finish your schedules by making two more squads to cover the night and mid shift.

Depending on your department's specific staffing and rules, you may be able to use all these templates or just a few of them.

Handling 24x7 patrol schedules can definitely be time-consuming. On top of regular schedules you need to keep track of time off, overtime, court appearances, and possibly shift trades. 

Instead of managing all this on paper or in excel, you can move scheduling online so it is easily accessible throughout the department.

Keep commmunicaiton open and schedule with ease.

PlanIt Police Scheduling Software can manage all your day-to-day scheduling tasks to save you a ton of time. 

See for yourself today with a free demonstration!

If you're unable to fit it in the budget, check out some free temporary options here!

 View these examples in a PDF so you can save it and share it!

More Articles:

• The Key to Choosing New Police Software Without Getting Ripped Off
• 5 Administration Problems You're Having - And How to Solve Them
• Idaho Schedule: 12 Hour Shifts for 24x7 Coverage